Serving dishes



Sept. 6, 1960 A. E. SMALLEY, JR v 2,951,610

SERVING DISHES Filed April 1. 1957 1 i M Z a 5 ATTORNEE United StatesPatent SERVING DISHES Alfred E. Smalley, Jr., 3901 Papermill Road,Knoxville, Tenn.

Filed Apr. 1, 1957, Ser. No. 649,878

1 Claim. (Cl. 220-20) This invention relates to improvements in servingdishes, more particularly to the Lazy Susan type.

Heretofore, it has been the practice to package materials for sale, andto remove the same to serving dishes for use. This is particularly trueof such articles as nuts, candies and the like.

One object of this invention is to provide a serving dish of the LazySusan type, which can be used also as a package or container for thematerials, so as not to require the separation or removal of thematerials therefrom during service.

Another object of the invention is to improve the construction ofserving dishes by providing a cover for a tray forming the dish, whichinitially would close the top of the dish, and which cover could beremoved and form a base therefor during service of the food particlestherefrom.

These objects may be accomplished, according to one embodiment of theinvention, by the provision of a container or tray which may have one ormore receptacles therein, and a cover therefor normally fitting over thecontainer or tray, but capable of removal therefrom. These parts may besealed together during the initial transportation or dispensing of thepackage, but the cover may be removed during service. The container ortray is provided with a socket in the underside thereof, while the coverhas a knob thereon, constructed so as to fit the socket, whereby thecontainer or tray may be superposed over the cover and supported on theknob in a ball and socket joint, permitting of free rotation relativethereto in the manner of a Lazy Susan."

This embodiment is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the serving dish, with the cover in placeon the container;

Fig, 2 is a similar view, with the parts reversed in the form of a LazySusan;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the tray or container; and

Fig. 4 is a detailed cross section therethrough.

The invention is shown in an embodiment comprising a tray or container,generally indicated at 1, with a cover 2 thereover, in the normalrelation of the parts, as illustrated in Fig. 1. These are shown asrelatively shallow, for purpose of illustration, but the shape and sizethereof may be varied, as desired.

The tray or container 1 comprises a bottom 3, having a surroundingupstanding wall 4, rising therefrom and terminating in a rim 5. Asillustrated in Fig. 3, the container or tray 1 may be divided, ifdesired, into a plurality of several receptacles by upright partitions6, which radiate from a central hub portion 7. This hub portion 7 has asocket 8 in the underside thereof, as shown in Fig. 4, which issubstantially semi-spherical.

The cover 2 is formed with a knob 9 on the top thereof, substantiallyspherical and of a size to fit within the socket 8, as shown in Fig, 2,whereby to form a freely rotatable ball and socket joint between thecover and tray when the parts are the relations shown in Fig. 2,

2,951,610, Patented Sept. 6, 1960 The cover 2 is also formed with asurrounding downturned rim 10, which fits over or is telescoped on therim 5 of the container 1 and may have a friction fit therewith, or becapable of interconnection in suitable manner. l

The tray or container 1 and the cover 2 may be formed of any suitable ordesired materials, such as glass, plastic, ceramics, etc. It ispreferred that the cover 2 be transparent, so that the contents arevisible therethrough. The knob 9 can be formed integral with the cover2, or secured thereto in any suitable or desired manner.

The entire container, as shown in Fig. 1, may be used for enclosing thecontents for storage and shipment, in which event the cover 2 preferablyis sealed or secured rigidly on the tray or receptacle 1. A tightfriction fit between the rims 5 and 10 may be sufiicient for thatpurpose, or these may be sealed with a tape or other sealing meansduring transportation.

When the use of the container is desired, the cover 2 can be removedfrom the tray 1 and inserted under the bottom thereof, with the knob 9fitting into the socket 8 on the tray in the manner shown in Fig. 2,thereby forming a base for the tray and providing for a revolving LazySusan type of dish, thereby permitting the display and dispensing of thecontents of the tray in the usual manner. Thereafter, when desired, theparts may be removed and the cover replaced, to enclose the contents ofthe tray.

This forms a quick, convenient and attractive means for serving from thesame container in which the contents are purchased, without thenecessity for transfer from a dispensing package to a separate dish. Itmay be used for many different types of articles of food and the like,such a nuts, candies, hors doeuvres, etc. If the cover is made oftransparent material, the contents may be visible when displayed forsale. Furthermore, the container may be reused as often as desired andfilled with any suitable materials.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in oneembodiment, it is recognized that variations and changes may be madetherein without departing from the invention as set forth in the claim.

I claim:

A convertible package container and revolvable serving dish comprising ashallow tray having a hub portion extending upwardly to the top of saidtray and a surrounding wall, spaced radial partitions between said hubportion and surrounding wall, the bottom wall of the tray being flat andsubstantially equal in circumference to the top of the tray and having acylindrical socket with a semi-spherical inner end at the top of the hubportion, cover means including an upper spherical knob handle adapted tofit normally over the Wall, said cover means disposed on the under sideof said tray with the knob loosely fitting in said socket to revolvablysupport said tray, the height of the knob being substantially equal tothe depth of the socket, said cover means having a flat top surfaceportion the periphery of which is spaced from the knob handle at adistance substantially greater than the diameter of the socket, saidflat surface being opposed and juxtaposed to said fiat tray bottom tosubstantially stabilize the tray as it revolves, whereby said trayserves as a Lazy Susan type dish.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,509,524 Morrison Sept. 23, 1924 1,599,913 Nicholas Sept. 14, 19262,553,880 Stigler May 22, 1951 2,719,413 Panzer Oct. 4, 1955

